Large Snow Piles are Causing Problems for Metro Drivers

DES MOINES, Iowa -- With more snow on the way this week, people are running out of places to put the snow that has already fallen.

“Piles are there, so you can’t see the oncoming traffic that well, or if you’re backing up from a parking place and you don’t have the sensors in your car and stuff, then it’s a little bit difficult. My house is piled up nine feet high, so backing out of my driveway is very, very slowly,” Terry Roberson said.

Just when you think the snow is plowed out of the way, it can create a whole new problem.

“When you’ve got this much snow, it’s going to create blind spots that typically aren’t there. So you’ve got to use the same amount of caution if you were going around a blind corner. Just everybody needs to be slow, be courteous, let people go in front of you,” Des Moines Police Sgt. Paul Parizek said.

If there is a corner or an intersection you are having trouble seeing around, you can call Des Moines Public Works or even the police non-emergency number.

“If there’s a safety hazard on private property that’s affecting the traffic flow, we definitely have the resources and the avenue to go ahead and take care of that problem. We need to know about it. We can’t be everywhere, so we need people to keep us informed and we will respond to those as quick as we can,” Parizek said.

Downtown drivers said snow on the side of the street near parking meters is also causing some problems.

“I just parked down the street down there. It’s kind of hard to see how far I should park up close next to the next car because I can’t really tell,” Jared Jones said.

Until public works crews can clean up more parking areas, Parizek said the solution is simple.

“If you can’t access the meter that’s right in front of the restaurant you want to go to without having your car halfway out in the road just move on down the road just a little bit because we are going to get to those. We are going to get that stuff cleaned up. It’s going to take some time and we also have to manage the resources that we have appropriately,” Parizek said.

You can let the city know about snow hazards by calling the Des Moines Public Works Department at (515) 283-4950 or the police non-emergency number at (515) 283-4811.